166-449 Aspects of Post-Communism

Credit Points

Coordinator

Prerequisites

Admission to fourth-year Political Science.

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

Addresses many of the theoretical issues raised by the collapse of communism and the emergence of post-communism. The arguments of those who claim that the experiment with modernity has been shown by the anti-communist revolutions to have finally failed, will be critically assessed. Marxisms focus on class as the motor of history will be compared with views that focus more on national identity. More practical problems of creating a post-communist political, economic, social and ideological system will also be considered. The subject will also consider some of the real achievements of post-communism. On completion of this subject students will be able to: analyse from a theoretical perspective the anti-communist revolutions of 1989-91 and the early stages of post-communism; locate these theoretical analyses within broader political and social theorising; highlight and discuss practical problems of implementing political, economic, social and ideological revolutions simultaneously.

Assessment

Written work totalling 6000 words.